Mighty Maverick (1970)

This stylized casting is based on a real car built
by the Ford Motor Company: the 1969 Maverick. Ford also produced
the "badge-engineered" sister car, the Mecury
Comet. The real car was introducted late in 1969. In it's first full
year of production, 1970,
the Maverick broke the first year sales record previously held by the
Mustang! The 1969
Maverick was built using a lot of Falcon parts, and was only available
with a straight 6-cylinder
engine. Although most people would agree that the car had nice
lines, nobody confused it with a
muscle
car! The "Grabber" option was introduced in 1970, but was basically an
interior and
exterior trim
package in it's first year. The Grabber really became a force when the
302 c.i. V-8 became an
option in
1971, and Ford began to market the Maverick as a performance car.
Production of the
Maverick continued through 1977.

Mattel's Mighty Maverick casting was designed in 1969 and produced in
1970. The car was initially called the "Mad Maverick" but the name was
changed because of
a
trademark issue. Only a few of the early "Mad Mavericks" are
known to exist, along with
a few cardboard case boxes with "Mad Maverick" stamped on the
side. Production of
spectraflame
Mighty Mavericks continued through 1971.

A pair of Mighty Mavericks in US
gold (L) and HK purple (R).
The Mighty Maverick was produced in both the US and Hong Kong. The
obvious difference between the two castings is the roof stripe. The US
casting has a wide
white
tampo print, and the HK casting has a thinner white sticker
applied. The HK casting
also has the typical blue window glass. The HK car has silver
(unpainted)
headlights, while the US grill is all black. The HK body sits on the
base a bit differently - the side pipes are farther from the rocker
panels. On the HK car, the "hood scoop" sits a little bit farther back
from the front edge of the hood, and at the top of the tail-light
panel, there is a slight notch, presumably to facilitate the
interior
and wing assembly.

US yellow and red Mighty
Mavericks.
A few US Mighty Mavericks were
finished with black stripes, although these were likely not production
cars.

Rare black stripe Mighty
Mavericks! (Courtesy of Bob Rosas)
As is common for many other Hot Wheels spectraflame castings, there are
general finish quality differences for US and HK cars. The US cars are
typically much brighter
and smoother, while many HK cars suffer from
rough paint, bubbling, and micro flaking. Smooth and bright HK cars do
exist, but are much tougher to find.

A group of pink Mighty Mavericks:
US salmon (L), US hot pink (C), and HK pink (R).
The wing assembly for the Mighty Maverick was molded with the interior
as one piece. After the
body was attached to the base, the wing was folded up and held in place
by pegs that fit into slots on either side of the rear window. The US
interior/wing component is a consistent black color, while some HK
wings have a slight brown tint swirling through them, and are slightly
translucent on the edges. A very rare brown interior and wing version
exists for HK cars (copper and orange only). The brown wing is
very
consistent and obvious - you'll know it when you see it. Most likely
however, if you think
you might have a brown wing, you probably don't. Perhaps equally
as rare as HK Mavs with brown wings, are HK Mavs with a black roof.
After the spectraflame paint had dried, a matte black was sprayed on
the top of the roof
only (doesn't extend down the pillars); the sticker/stripe lies on top
of the black-painted roof.

A pair of HK Mighty Mavericks
with rare brown interiors and wings.

HK Mighty Mavericks with the rare
black roof variation.
As for value, US hot pink
and purple Mavericks aren't particularly difficult to find, but
are very popular and desirable colors, so a mint car in those colors
will
command a premium
price. The condition of the stripe also is important and affects the
value,
but this car is all about the wing! A missing wing decreases the
value by at least 50%, probably more. A reproduction wing will only add
the cost of the repro wing (about $15). A damaged wing will
affect
value nearly as much as a missing wing (i.e. missing flap, or
completely separated at the trunk fold.) Partial tearing or cracking at
the trunk fold is very common, especially on HK cars, and can affect
value.

The Mighty Maverick mother lode!
In 1973, the Mighty Maverick was reincarnated as an enamel clad and
wingless car called the Street Snorter. The Mighty Maverick name was
reprised
in 1975 in two enamel variations (blue and light green), still sans
wing, and also lost the opening hood and engine detail. Finally, there
was a "Super Chromes" version of the Mighty Maverick produced in 1976.

A pair of rough '73 Street
Snorters.
A lime '74 Mighty Maverick.
Color chart
US
COLORS:
|
COMMENTS:
|
yellow |
common
|
blue
|
common
|
red |
common
|
green
|
common
|
aqua |
common
|
magenta |
common
|
lime |
common
|
light ("apple") green |
common
|
hot pink
|
common, but popular
|
purple |
hard to find
|
rose |
hard to find
|
salmon |
hard to find
|
gold |
rare
|
HK
COLORS:
|
COMMENTS:
|
blue |
common
|
red
|
common
|
green
|
common
|
aqua
|
common
|
purple
|
hard to find
|
orange
|
hard to find
|
copper
|
hard to find
|
olive
|
hard to find
|
rose ("watermelon")
|
hard to find
|
pink |
very rare
|
lime
|
very rare
|
A very rare original "Mad
Maverick"! (Courtesy of Bob Rosas)
A rare lime HK Mighty Maverick in
the
blister!
Photo & info credits: Alex & Eric Moll

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